A Hundred Years in the Making (Oneshot)
by AriTheDoggo
Summary: "These graveyards in villages. These monuments to knights who died in and before the great Calamity. For all he knew, these people were his greatest friends. But instead, he looked upon their graves with no emotion except for emptiness, and heavy guilt because of their deaths." During BoTW. SPOILERS!


_**A Hundred Years in the Making (Warning: Spoilers for BoTW!)**_

It was strange, the way that Link could look upon the graves of people he was supposed to know and feel nothing.

These graveyards in villages. These monuments to knights who died in and before the great Calamity. For all he knew, these people were his greatest friends.

But instead, he looked upon their graves with no emotion except for emptiness, and heavy guilt because of their deaths.

It was his fault some of these people died. It was his fault. All his fault. It was his fault that so many peaceful and prosperous villages fell. His fault that the land was a chaotic mess, with no leadership.

His fault that the champions died, and the princess was trapped, fighting back the beast he had failed to defeat.

Yet he remembered nothing. Sure, he had a handful of memories. He could remember the cockiness and skill of Revali. The motherly, yet feisty nature of Urbosa. The kindness and generosity of Mipha. The mirth of Daruk.

He only had _one_ memory (one!) of each of them. He knew _nothing_.

He had no idea of Mipha's love for him until Prince Sidon and King Dorphan had bluntly pointed it out. He couldn't remember if he loved her back.

He had no idea that Daruk had fed him rocks until he had dug through Daruk's Training Journal. How had Link reacted? How close had he and Daruk been?

He had no idea if he and Revali had been playful rivals or arch enemies, or even if they had ever had contact before Link had drawn the Master Sword. For all Link knew, they had been the best of friends!

He had no idea if he and Urbosa were anything more than acquaintances! For all he knew, she had struck him with lightning! He knew from experience that it was _not_ pleasant. For all he knew, she hated him!

Link didn't even know who his _parents_ were, for crying out loud!

He was positive that he knew more about the princess than his past self. And that wasn't a very high bar. His memories of her were jumbled and confused, like a puzzle with missing pieces. One memory she was scolding him, the next she was acting casually, and even tried to make him eat a frog. Perhaps that was the reason he hated eating any part of a frog now.

And another he was saving her life from those Yiga. As evil as they were, Link found them amusing. They had a _major_ obsession with bananas, and he was pretty sure they still didn't know what had happened to Kohga. And they investigated any suspicious noise, and if they found a bomb lying on the floor, they would simply pick it up and pocket it for later.

 _How do they even_ fit _in the pockets?_ Then again, Link had a pouch that was enchanted by a giant dancing korok (creator of suspicious looking lumps of golden… uh… clay. Yes, we'll go with that.), so he couldn't argue.

 _Your thoughts are distracting you again!_ Link scolded himself. _Pull it together, Link! Isn't distraction like this the reason that you failed?_

Ouch. Even though that was himself, it _stung_. One, because that was really lowering his self esteem. Two, because he wasn't sure, as his memory had somehow been wiped clean, and that was still a missing piece. Which lowered his self esteem further.

And Impa had told him not long before he had awoken, " _Lower your self esteem, and you lower your chances of saving Hyrule. You are stronger than you believe, but your doubts have always, and will always, follow you."_

So he was supposed to defeat the calamity by _believing_ in himself?

He had voiced this to Impa, and she had looked as if she was about to smack him. And he had been very sure she would do so, as she had done so a mere minutes before when he had voiced his doubts. _Feisty woman. Especially for her age._

And now she was sending him to yet _another_ place to recover his memories. _I've been to the swampy Blatchery Plain so many times, and I've combed every inch looking for those_ stupid _koroks. If I didn't find a memory then, why would I find one_ now _?_

But Impa wasn't taking no for an answer. Instead, she yanked the Sheikah slate right out of his hands, snapped a picture of a guardian portrait on her wall, and sent him off, threatening to slap him so hard that his head spin.

Would it be questionable if Link really wanted to see that? It sounded physically impossible, and Link was positive it was a figure of speech, but he found things far more amusing if taking in a literal sense.

 _Piece of cake._ He thought as he spooned the sugary dessert into his mouth.

Camping under the stars made him feel nostalgic. Link glanced up at the stars from his mat.

 _This is the moment where someone would say, "Ah, the memories." But unfortunately, I don't have any memories of this._ He knew that he traveled with the princess, though, so that was probably why it seemed familiar from the moment he had awoken.

He heard a whinny from his right and glanced over at his horse, who was illuminated in the firelight, with a deadpan expression.

"What do you want now? A piece of cake?" Link asked. "Sorry, but I ate it all."

The horse trotted up to him and shoved her milky white nose into his face.

"Ack- no, Epona, stop!" Link yelped.

The mare nickered softly, before nuzzling into his pouch, pulling out a few carrots, and then trotting back to her spot with satisfaction.

 _Darn horse._ Link thought. _I was going to use those in a new soup._

He had found the horse not long after he had awoken. Not far from the Dueling Peaks stable, actually. On the very plain he was making his way to. _Huh. That's interesting._

 _Maybe I should let my thoughts run wild a bit more often._ Link thought. _For all I know, it will help my memories recover._

Link laid back and closed his eyes.

* * *

The next day, Link rode the rest of the way to Blatchery Plain. It took awhile to distinguish between the guardians, but then he found the right place.

He glanced between the guardian and the picture, before he felt himself dragged into the world a hundred years before a bit too quickly for his liking.

* * *

"Link, safe yourself!" The princess pleaded. "Go!"

Link's breathing was heavy, and it didn't help that the air was smokey with ashes. He could feel the stinging and burning of everything from small cuts to long, jagged wounds.

He could feel the gaping hole in his side, and he knew that this was the end. He wasn't going to last much longer, and that dream had shown that there wasn't any hope left for him.

He glanced back at the princess. _But there's hope for her._

So he used the Master Sword, the great Blade of Evil's Bane, which was now nicked and dirty, to push himself upward. He could hear ringing in his ears. _No, wait… that ringing… it's-_

" _There is a mere 8% chance of you surviving this."_ Fi said emotionlessly within his mind, though Link could feel her foreign dread washing over him. " _Are you prepared to leave Hyrule, Master Link?"_

 _I am not afraid to die._ Link replied wordlessly. And he didn't _have_ to put anything into words. The bond between the hero and the sword was strong. Like sun and moon. Darkness and light. Land and sky. One could not survive without the other.

With the condition he was in, it wasn't surprising, the condition of the sword. It was somehow still sharp, though.

So, after steadying his unstable and aching legs, he faced the guardian that was approaching.

The guardian aimed its beam, and Link prepared the Master Sword. _Please escape, Princess. This is the end for me._

Then the princess pushed her way in front of him and raised her hand.

A bright golden glow consumed the field, as well as his sight. _Could it be?_

As the light faded, he saw the princess looking at her hand with an expression of puzzlement. "Was that… the power…" Though her voice was quiet, he could hear it. Even from a distance.

He smiled faintly as he collapsed onto the ground. _She's done it._

He could feel his consciousness waning. It wouldn't be long until he died, and would never see her again, possibly for years to come. _But that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make._

"Link, get up!" She pleaded as she pulled him into her arms. Link let out a strangled cough. "You're going to be just fine!"

Link looked up at her, trying to speak. "This… was my fate. Even from… the beginning." His voice was weaker than he liked. "Princess… I…" He was interrupted by a hoarse cough.

And then he was dragged down into infinite darkness.

Or a not so infinite darkness, as he awoke, one hundred years later.

* * *

Link's eyes shot open. "I suppose Impa was right. That was _actually_ an important memory." He mumbled. He patted Epona's neck. _I suppose it's time. Better now than never._

 _The Divine Beasts are free._

 _The Master Sword is strapped to my back._

 _And courage is in place. After all, courage needn't be remembered, for it is never forgotten._

"It's time…" Link mounted Epona. "To defeat Ganon."

" _I have awaited this moment for a hundred years."_ A voice at the edge of his conscience whispered.

Now he knew what it was. _Yes, Fi. So have I._

He kicked into Epona's sides, and set his sights for Hyrule Castle.

 _So have I._

* * *

 **Happy Veterans' Day! Yes, I know that was yesterday, but today is the day I have off, so deal with it. Am I procrastinating on Before? Yeah, probably. Should I go work on it? Yeah, probably. But don't worry! The next chapter shouldn't come in _too_ long. Maybe later today, if I'm motivated enough. Fortunately, this didn't really have any spoilers for Before, but it does have _huge_ spoilers for BoTW. So don't read this if you don't want spoilers! Though, if you're down here, you've probably already read it all.**

 **Well, enjoy your day/evening, folks!**

 **Sincerely (probably),**

 **Ari**


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